Anywhere in the world, when a woman is raped, a child sexually abused, or a person waylaid by thugs, who do victims universally run to? To the local police of course. But with a regularity that is reaching worrying proportions of late, police forces across India, whether in Delhi, Mumbai or Kolkata, are first questioning a woman’s moral values, trying to bribe family members of assaulted children into silence or if all else fails, denying that they were approached at all.

But what happens to these esteemed men in uniform when they are exposed and the wrongdoing brought home to them? First comes a statement painting the said officer or constable as a saint. The cops being accused knew nothing and are being unfairly accused. u00a0Then, when photographic or written evidence makes denial impossible, the erring police personnel is suspended and in the “rarest of rare” cases — given a punishment posting. Horror of horrors! How is the poor guy expected to survive in a rural police station or in a desk job?u00a0